A New Generation of Trios and Troublemakers
by ArtRJBones
Summary: It's 2017 and the children of the old Hogwarts heroes - and villains - are now attending. Will they fill their parents' and namesakes' shoes, or will they surprise everyone?  Several next-gen kids are important in the story, not just Al and Rose.
1. Chapter 1

"Where shall we go, Al?" Rose asked, holding onto her cousin's hand to avoid getting separated in the rush of chattering people who had just boarded the Hogwarts express. They had run to the open window of the first compartment on the platform side to wave to their family, but a group of third-year girls had politely informed them that they always sat there and if it wasn't any trouble – "Of course," the red-haired first-year had said, slightly embarrassed, and they had left.

"No idea," Albus was now saying. "We could follow James."

"Nah, he'll be going to sit with his fourth-year friends, they won't want us tagging along."

"True. Look, this one's empty!" Albus exclaimed suddenly, pulling Rose unexpectedly towards the compartment on their right. "Oh wait, no it's not ..." The only occupant was a golden-haired boy of about sixteen already decked in his Hufflepuff robes who sat huddled in a corner by the window, his nose in a large book. He glanced up as Albus hesitated with his hand on the door, smiled briefly, and continued reading.

"Come on, I don't think he'll mind," said Rose, who was the bolder of the pair. She pushed open the door and sat down at the other end of his bench, tactfully allowing Albus, who could be timid with strangers, to sit facing her in the opposite corner to the unknown boy. "You don't mind, do you?" she enquired politely.

"No, not at all," he replied. "I'm Jason, by the way, I'm in sixth year. You two are new, aren't you?"

"Yeah," said Rose. "I'm Rose and this is my cousin –"

"Albus," he finished for her.

"Cool. So what house do you want to be in?"

"Gryffindor," they said simultaneously, but Albus added, "or Hufflepuff, or Ravenclaw really, I don't mind, but I don't think I'm smart enough for Ravenclaw. Not Slytherin, though." Jason nodded.

"Good, I mean, all the houses have their merits, of course, but I do think it's easier to go astray in Slytherin. After all, there may not have been many Dark wizards over the last few years, but one can't help but remember that nearly all those old Death Eaters were Slytherins once. I don't want to put you off being friends with them, of course," he added hastily, "oh no, most of them are perfectly nice now. In fact, my girlfriend's brother is a Slytherin and we get on perfectly well. Don't let old prejudices sway you!"

Rose and Albus looked at each other, not sure quite what to make of him. He reminded them rather of their Uncle Percy.

"Did you know Teddy? Ted Lupin?" Albus asked suddenly.

"Oh, yes - he was prefect when I was in second year."

"Yeah! He's my dad's godson," he beamed.

"Oh!" Jason looked a little more closely at the black-haired, green-eyed child in the corner. "You wouldn't happen to be James Potter's brother, would you? Harry Potter's son?"

"Yep, that's me," Albus replied, suddenly feeling uncomfortable. It was very inconvenient being even just a bit shy when one had such famous family.

"Well, I hope you don't turn out quite such a trouble-maker as your brother!" Jason said with his eyebrows raised, which made them laugh a little, but added: "He's a nice boy, though, and very helpful when he wants to be," and this sounded like a genuine opinion rather than mere politeness. "Just ... doesn't quite seem to think that the rules apply to him." They laughed even harder at that.

"That sounds like our James, eh, Al?"

"Well, you see, I was prefect last year, so I got quite well-acquainted with the rule-breakers," the Hufflepuff boy said with half a smile. "Anyway, not wishing to be rude, but I do need to get on with my reading. I'll put these on –" he brandished something which they didn't recognise, but looked rather like wireless noise-cancelling headphones –"so you don't need to worry about disturbing me." He slipped them over his head and they clamped themselves around his ears as he disappeared behind his book.

"So you wouldn't mind not being in Gryffindor?" Rose asked a moment later, trying to sound casual.

"Well, I'd rather I was, but no, not really," said Albus. "Anything but Slytherin, you know."

"Yeah," she agreed fervently. "I'm just worried I'll be in Ravenclaw 'cause I'm smart – sorry, I know that sounds big-headed, I don't mean to be – and Dad won't like it."

"Oh, come off it, I'm sure he didn't mean what he said on the platform!"

"Well no, maybe not, but still. I do want to be in Gryffindor."

"You know –" Albus paused. "Um, if you want – apparently, I mean – something about that you can choose, or – or the Hat listens to you, at least."

Rose frowned. "Really? I've never heard that."

"I don't think many people know," he muttered uncomfortably. His dad may not have said anything about it being secret, but he was pretty sure no-one else knew, so he should probably keep it that way. Rose was curious, but decided not to press him further.

"Hey, have you got that chess set we gave you for your birthday?" she asked brightly, changing the subject.

"Yeah," Albus answered gratefully, and he took it from his suitcase to set it up. He knew Rose would win – she always did – but he would probably enjoy the game anyway, so if she wanted to play, that was fine by him.


	2. Chapter 2

"Anything from the trolley?"

Rose and Albus looked up as her pawn leapt upon his bishop, beating it savagely. A woman stood by three levels of sweets of all kinds. Both of them immediately began digging out Knuts and Sickles from their pockets.

"Give us a couple of chocolate frogs, please, and – do you wanna try some Bertie Bott's Every-Flavour Beans, Al, or is that too risky? I hear you get earwax-flavoured ones sometimes!"

"Nah, let's go for it," he grinned. "And a cauldron cake for me, please." The trolley witch took their money and counted it.

"Hey, do you suppose Jason knows she's here, with his head buried in that book and those ear-thingies on?" Rose wondered out loud, and nervously tapped the older boy on the shoulder. He almost dropped his book in surprise, but smiled gratefully when he saw the sweets trolley.

"Thanks," he said, taking his magical headphones off. "I'll just have a chocolate frog, please; I'm not hungry but I collect the cards," he explained to the two first-years as he handed over the coins. Rose started opening the Every-Flavour Beans and looking at the different colours, wondering what each one would taste like.

"Well I'm starving," said Albus. "I might have two of those cauldron cakes, actually, they do look really nice."

"You pig!" said his cousin. "Still, it's your money, I suppose."

"Do you know how much you sound like a mother there, Rosie?" he teased lightly, taking both cakes in one hand and his chocolate frog in the other.

"Oh, shut up." She picked up a bean that looked suspiciously bogey-coloured. "Here, Al, try one," she suggested wickedly, handing it to him. He popped it in his mouth without a second glance and, to her surprise, chewed happily.

"Lemon and lime, I think that one was, with a hint of gingerbread. Very tasty." And he couldn't understand why Rose looked so annoyed. Between them they made their way through the packet, Jason back under his headphones again, and the worst flavours they got were one flour ("At least it's food," Rose said, screwing up her face) and one metal (which wasn't too bad, really, according to Albus, but Rose said she was glad he'd had that one because people said blood tasted like metal and she didn't want to feel like she had blood in her mouth).

It was just as Rose said this about the metal-flavoured bean that three students appeared by their still-open (since the sweets trolley) compartment door. They didn't seem much older than Rose and Albus, but must have been at least second-years because all three were clothed in black robes lined with green and had green-and-silver striped ties hung loosely around their necks, not done up. Two were girls, one black-haired, one blonde, and one was a boy with hair to rival that of a Weasley, though without a freckle to be seen.

"You don't wanna taste blood, eh?" said the blonde girl. She had a strong New York accent, and Rose wondered why she was coming to a British school. "Well, then, let us give you a bit of advice." She stepped forwards into the compartment, her friends standing one on each side behind her. "You wanna make the right friends in this school. Otherwise you could find yourself in … difficulties." Albus was on his feet.

"Are you threatening my cousin?" he said in a low, slightly shaky but dangerous voice. He was gripping his wand – he knew full well he didn't have a single curse or jinx at his disposal, but nevertheless he felt safer with it in his hand. The Slytherins laughed.

"Don't think we're scared of you," the boy said. "You don't know an ounce of magic yet, do you?

"'Course you don't," the black-haired girl sneered.

"My name's Penelope Bulstrode," introduced the blonde, seemingly ignoring her companions. "These are my friends Flint –" the other girl nodded – "and Greengrass." The boy merely raised his eyebrows arrogantly at the mention of his name. "Get yourselves in Slytherin and we'll be friends." Her lip curled as if she found that idea repulsive. "Get yourself in any other house and you'll just have to learn not to get in our way."

Rose, whose hands were balled into fists, hissed furiously, "Get out of our compartment!" They laughed again.

"Your compartment? Your compartment?" Bulstrode jeered. "You're first-years. Nothing's yours until you win it from us."

"Oh yeah?" said Albus, so angry that he forgot all his fear. "Bring it!"

"Albus, sit down!" Rose snapped, jumping up and catching his arm. He was going to get himself in serious danger if he kept challenging these intruders. She turned to face them. "You get out right now, or –"

"Or what? You'll tell Mummy?" Greengrass said in a mock baby voice. But what he didn't realise was that whilst Rose had still been sat down, she had poked Jason gently in the shin with her foot a few times until he looked up and quietly removed his headphones. The sixth-year ex-prefect was now standing up behind the two cousins, and a flicker of nervousness crossed the Slytherins' faces.

"You three, of course. Spent half of last year dragging you to Professor Barl's office, didn't I? Don't usually have half so much trouble with first-years. How about you step outside now and leave us alone?"

"You're not Prefect any more, you can't tell us what to do," Bulstrode said uncertainly.

"Oh really, Bulstrode? You know, I'm sure your Head of House would love to hear you explain that one to him. Now – out, all of you!" he almost shouted, pointing over Albus' and Rose's heads. Slouching sulkily, trying to make it seem like they were just casually leaving rather than following a student's orders, the Slytherins shuffled out, sneering at the first-years over their shoulders as they went. Flint even stuck out her tongue, but Rose, now feeling completely safe, laughed at her and stuck her tongue out back, confusing the older student into embarrassment.

"I hope they weren't bothering you too badly," said Jason, concerned, as he pushed the door shut. "They're absolute nuisances, those three are. But don't judge the whole house by them."

"We won't," said Albus. The rest of the train journey continued peacefully, and excitement mounted in both of the new students as they drew ever closer to Hogwarts.


	3. Chapter 3

"Al, hadn't you better get into your robes?" Rose asked as darkness fell ever thicker around the train. She was beginning to pack away the chess set after three consecutive victories, although she had kindly let Albus win the first one. "We'll be there any moment now."

"Yeah, I guess …" He glanced at Jason, who had fallen asleep with his headphones still on, then at the door. After their encounter with the Slytherins, he wasn't sure he wanted to leave her so unprotected.

"I'll be fine," said Rose, who had a knack for understanding what people didn't say, especially when she knew them well – and she knew Albus better than almost anyone, having spent the most time with him at family get-togethers because of their almost non-existent age difference (she was less than three months older than him). "I can always kick Jason if I need to. No-one's that deep a sleeper that they wouldn't wake up if I really tried to make them." Both of them grinned. She hardly ever used violence, but Albus knew from experience that when she did, boy was she ever good at it. Two summers ago he had accidentally left open the cage door of her three white rats which she had brought with her on a visit to the Potters' house; though one had made it back unharmed, their cat (one of Crookshanks' great-grand-kittens) had caught one and the other was simply never seen again. Rose, who was very fond of animals and had grown attached to her pets, got very angry and started kicking Albus hard in the shins. She wouldn't have been quite so angry if she hadn't also been frustrated at her parents who seemed to find the whole thing very funny. They had never explained to her why, after Crookshanks IV had been seen stalking around the cage on an earlier occasion, Harry had pointed his wand at each rat in turn saying a spell she didn't recognise and seemed very relieved when nothing happened, or why Ron hadn't been very keen on her getting them in the first place and tried (unsuccessfully because her Muggle friend from primary school had rats which she adored) to convince her to at least choose mice instead.

As he walked into the cubicle to get changed, Albus was almost shaking with a mixture of excitement and fear. So soon they would be at Hogwarts ... the place had filled his dreams and fantasies for so long ... would it live up to them? Silly question, it was Hogwarts, of course it would. But would he live up to others' expectations? That was what made nerves bubble up inside him, and for one wild moment he considered bolting when the train stopped and never going in, never being Sorted, never having to deal with his family's varied reputations, but he knew that was stupid. He was going to spend the happiest 7 years of his life there.

"I am going to, I am," he said forcefully, then giggled - he hadn't meant to speak out loud. He hoped nobody was nearby and had heard. Just then, he heard a voice: "We will be reaching Hogwarts in five minutes' time. Please leave your luggage on the train, it will be taken to the school separately." Now almost panicking as well as embarrassed, he got dressed very quickly but waited for silence (other than the sound of the train) before he hurried out.

He had indeed only just made it: as he reached the compartment, he felt the train begin to slow, and saw that Rose was already standing up and Jason had disappeared entirely. She reached out and squeezed his hand once. "It's gonna be fine, Al," she reassured him. "Don't worry. I'm scared to death as well, my heart's going crazy. But we'll be fine." He nodded.

"Yeah. Come on." And they walked to the train door together.

"Firs'-years! Firs'-years over here!" Hagrid was calling. "C'mon, firs'-years, follow me!" Thet ran forwards.

"Hi, Hagrid," said Albus loudly as they approached him. He looked down.

"All right there, Al?" the half-giant said with a wink. "Evenin', Rose!" He looked round at the large group of gathered students. "Is this everyone? Right then! This way … mind yer step, now!" The path was quite dark. Albus put a palm against the trees as they passed, thinking he was glad for the lingering warmth in the air – it had been a glorious summer – and the dryness underfoot, because he couldn't see at all what he was stepping on. It was nice to hear the sounds of feet on crumbling earth, stone and the odd leaf instead of squelching through mud, like it had been for James. He had written home on damp paper in the first week with tales of the terrible downpour they had arrived in. "Jus' round this corner here, yeh'll get yer firs' sight o' Hogwarts!"

Albus' pace quickened. They turned.

The castle was beautiful – everything he had imagined; he had seen pictures, of course, enchanted ones even, but thought that the real thing would be so much more magical somehow, and he had been right. The far-off lights made it seem to twinkle, and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. The moon hung low between its turrets. He had heard Rose gasp behind him, but personally had been holding his breath fully inhaled and, after a second, let it out slowly as he took in the whole, amazing scene.

"No more'n four to a boat!" Hagrid instructed. Some of them, transfixed by Hogwarts, hadn't noticed the little boats by the lake until that point. Albus and Rose scrambled into an empty one and were joined by a girl with waist-length, dead-straight brown hair and a straight fringe. Her eyes were almost black. Albus thought she was very pretty, but Rose thought she was boring and stuck-up, because she didn't so much as smile at them or speak until he said shyly,

"Hey there, um, I'm Albus Potter, what's your name?"

"Daphne Finnigan," she said, and Rose realised she sounded just as shy. "Yours?" she asked, nodding her head in her direction.

"Rose," she replied. They were silent again, and it seemed that the next thing they knew, they were climbing up the stone steps to the Entrance Hall.

The Sorting would soon begin.


	4. Chapter 4

"RAVENCLAW!"

Everyone who knew much about the old wizarding families stared in surprise as the blond-haired first year stood shakily up and walked, grinning, to the table full of blue-and-bronze ties. Had they misheard? No, he looked so much like his father and grandfather in pictures they had seen, but really, many of them could barely believe their senses! A Malfoy, not in Slytherin? Some of the Ravenclaws looked uncomfortable at accepting him, but most were open-minded enough not to care.

A couple more names down the line, there was even more staring and some muttering when "Potter, Albus" was called. Everyone knew he was the son of the famous Harry Potter, the Chosen One who had ended the reign of terror their parents talked about in hushed voices – and, for that matter, he was recognised (amongst the Gryffindors at least) as the brother of the incredibly popular and now notorious trouble-maker James. Albus looked ghost-white as he sat down and screwed up his eyes as the Hat was placed on his head. He was thinking, "Not Slytherin ... not Slytherin ..."

"Hmph!" came a voice in his head, startling him so much he nearly fell off the stool. "Another one! Just like your father, eh? Maybe a little more timid than him, though, I see, and more of a hard worker ... maybe Hufflepuff would suit you better?" Albus didn't want to hope too much for Gryffindor; as long as it wasn't Slytherin, he would be in whatever house the Hat thought best, so he didn't reply. "But, then again, you are a Potter ... and there is a fire of courage in your heart, even if you do not know it yet. And chivalry ... you would do anything for your sister and cousin, would you not? You would put others before yourself, yes, even in matters of life and death ... just like your father indeed. GRYFFINDOR!" Albus smiled with relief and scurried off to join his brother, who clapped him on the back and resumed their earlier discussion of Quidditch. A few minutes later Rose joined them.

"It tried to put me in Ravenclaw," she whispered so only Albus could hear, "but I said Dad wanted me in Gryffindor. It said that wasn't a very brave reason to want to be in Gryffindor, was it, and then I got annoyed and –" she giggled – "told the Hat I would throw it on the floor and stamp on it in front of everyone if it didn't put me in Gryffindor. It sort of laughed at me, and said that's more like it, so now I'm red-and-gold with you!" She beamed and hugged her cousin. What she didn't mention, even to him, was that the Hat had almost considered putting her in Slytherin instead for her determination to get her own way, before deciding that this ought to be rewarded by giving her the thing she wanted most.

"It considered putting me in Hufflepuff," Albus admitted quietly, "but only for a moment." He paused, then added, glowing with pride in spite of himself, "Said I was just like my father."

"Wow, good for you!"

"Hey, maybe we'll have the whole family in Gryffindor," said James, entering the conversation.

"What about Teddy?" asked his brother, glancing across at the Hufflepuff table even though Harry's godson had left last year, so he had never even seen him sitting there. "Or doesn't he count?"

"Well, he's not blood related is he?" Rose mused. "But we call him our cousin sometimes. So I reckon he does count."

"Oh, alright then," shrugged James, then he grinned wickedly at her. "I bet Hugo's in Hufflepuff anyway, has he stopped sucking his thumb yet?"

"Hey! Don't insult Hufflepuff like that!" she retorted, sticking out her tongue. The three of them laughed. James' friend Derek hit him on the shoulder at that point, reminding him that they had been in the middle of a game of consequences before his brother had turned up (in the wizarding world, consequences was a much more exciting game that Muggle consequences because, if you used the right magical paper and pens, the whole scenario would be acted out by little stick men at the bottom), so Rose and Albus were left with each other. The new headmaster stood up and gave a short speech, and then the food! The first-years gasped in astonishment as it appeared on their plates, and sighed with delight as they ate it. It was amazing.

They were just finishing their hysterics at James' most recent consequences result, which had turned out so funny that he had decided to show them even though it was a little bit rude, when suddenly, Scorpius Malfoy was behind them. "Hi," he said. The pair looked strangely at him.

"Hey," Rose, who was friendly to everyone no matter what her Ron said about them, replied. "What brings you to the Gryffindor table?" The boy shifted awkwardly.

"Well, I just wanted to say hi, really –"

"Mission accomplished then!" Albus pointed out, and all three of them laughed a little. The ice was broken.

"Yeah, well, you know, our parents were enemies at school, but my Dad's always said how he feels really bad about that stuff – I never really knew exactly what it was about – and I thought it would be good to, y'know, make a good start. Not be enemies, I mean. Make Malfoy, Potter and Weasley … friends." He smiled hopefully at them, extending a hand. There was a moment's pause.

"Sure," said Albus, shaking the offered hand. A thought had struck him. What if the Hat's exclamation of "another one" had not just been because Albus had been like his father … but because three names beforehand, the young Malfoy had been hoping hard not to be like his? Rose, on the other hand, hesitated a little longer, remembering what her father had said, and despite her outgoing personality was almost tempted to shake her head and turn away. But as the young pureblood looked at her, disappointment beginning to creep into his face, she thought: he can't help his family, any more than I can help being half-blood. And besides … you could still beat a friend in every test. Smirking at this thought, she nodded.

"Screw tradition," she said spontaneously, and surprised Scorpius entirely by standing up and hugging him. He stayed by their table until the prefects stood up and began herding the first-years to their house common rooms. And so, the unlikely third component joined their friendship, and a new trio, crossing boundaries of house, blood purity and past enmities, was born.


	5. Chapter 5

"What were you doing over at the Gryffindor table?" a curious voice asked from by Scorpius' shoulder. The girl who been Sorted directly after him and sat next to him for the Feast was beside him now, looking at him with her head on one side like a confused puppy.

"Just making friends," he said.

She frowned, seeming puzzled. "With the Gryffindors? What was wrong with us?" She laughed though, so Scorpius joined in.

"Nothing, just – my Dad knew their parents," he explained shortly. He hoped she didn't know who his father was, and by her lack of reaction he didn't think she did.

"Oh, okay. That's nice I suppose. I hope you'll spend some time with the Ravenclaws though!" she said with a slight giggle, and something in her face made Scorpius realise: she fancied him. He was surprised. He'd barely spoken to her at the table, and been very nervous all day which he doubted was an attractive air to give.

The girl, whose name was Mala, thought differently. She too had been nervous, but had been stuck with three boys, both on the train and in the boats, who had pretended in every way possible not to be fazed at all. She didn't know why. So when she had been stood behind Scorpius in line, and heard him muttering to the boy in front that he was terrified, she had been pleased to hear it. And he did have the most gorgeous blond hair and slate-coloured eyes. As for the boys on the train, they were only trying to impress her. She was Padma Patil's daughter, and had inherited the beautiful, shining black hair, olive skin and deep, dark eyes. Scorpius wasn't interested though. Rose Weasley had hair like fire and eyes like chocolate and she had hugged him. Why would he care about any other girls?

Over in the Gryffindor tower, Rose wasn't thinking about romance in the slightest. She was just glad to be at Hogwarts and to have friends. Albus spoke her mind when he said,

"It's good to be here, isn't it? And to be here together. And I hope Scorpius turns out to be as good a friend as he seems to be. He seems really nice, don't you think? I wonder what exactly did go on between him and our parents …"

"I don't," said Rose with a slight shudder. "I've heard the tone of voice Dad puts on when he talks about him and the little flinch-y look on Mum's face. I don't think it was nice." Privately, she remembered a conversation she hadn't been meant to overhear a couple of years ago after Hermione had had to visit Malfoy Manor as part of her job at the Ministry. Ron had complained earlier in the day that they shouldn't have made her do it, and been going to carry on when his wife had gently interrupted him and said they would talk about it later. Unable to sleep that night, due to the new owl they had bought that morning which was screeching loudly in the room underneath to hers, still unsettled in its new home, Rose had just passed Hugo's room on the way to the bathroom she heard her father whispering angrily behind her parents' door; something about "… happy to stand by and watch you get tortured by that b–"

"He wasn't happy, Ronald, did you see his face?" her mother had hissed back. "And there's no need to bring that up again anyway … don't you think I was reminded enough of it today already? Ugh. That Manor … " A pause. Rose knew she shouldn't stay and listen, but at the mention of torture she had become rooted to the spot in horror. Mum had been tortured? "Anyway, it's alright. Nothing Dark to be seen any more. And he greeted me perfectly politely –" Someone spat; presumably Ron.

"Like he's even capable of being polite. How can he look you in the eye after all those years of –"

"Please, Ron, keep your voice down. I don't want to wake Hugo, now he's finally outgrown his ridiculous bedtime tantrums (honestly, I thought only toddlers did that!) especially when we're going out tomorrow. Look, I'm sorry I snapped. But really. I'm okay. Astoria's lovely, and the boy is very quiet but he smiled a lot. You wouldn't believe it from someone with a father like his, you really wouldn't. I'm just glad I was able to speak to Astoria most of the time instead of him." After a moment's silence, Rose strained to listen, then heard kissing noises and immediately tiptoed away as fast as she could. Why did her parents' arguments always end with kissing? Adults were weird.

"Rose? What're you zoning out about?" Albus was asking her. She shook her head.

"Don't worry. Just … I hope Dad won't be too mad that we're friends with Scorpius."

"Oh come on, Rose, Uncle Ron adores you. You're his precious little princess. He might be upset, but he won't really yell at you, will he?" Rose made a face.

"No. He'll just yell in whispers at Mum instead and get her all worked up and then start kissing her like they're sixteen again right in front of us and then Mum'll come and have a private chat with me and he'll be grumpy for days but never mention it. That's what happens when he's mad. It's alright for them now, they're used to each other and if that's how they deal with stuff, fine, but I don't like it. Not when it's about me. I'd rather they talked to me to my face." She looked around suddenly, horrified that she had opened up in such a public place, but some people had already gone to bed and certainly nobody was taking any notice of them, not even James who was busy charming a parchment plane.

Albus didn't reply straight away. When they were little, Rose had sometimes told him that she got scared when her father was shouting, but he thought she'd worked through it now. She hadn't said anything about it for years – in fact, she often laughed and joked about her parents' bickering and would sit there in front of it all just rolling her eyes and shaking her head with her eyebrows raised and half a smile on her face whilst he found it very awkward. "Maybe you should say so," he said after a moment. "Tell him straight up, 'I'm friends with Scorpius Malfoy,' and if he tries to walk away ask him what he thinks. Ask him if he minds. Try to get it out of him. See what happens."

Rose thought about this for a while. "Yeah. Maybe. We'll see." He decided not to pursue it.

"Well, I'm going up now," he said, motioning towards the boy's dormitories.

"Yeah, me too," she replied, and they parted.


	6. Chapter 6

Four years later, Albus and Rose, Gryffindor prefects, sat down at their usual end of the Gryffindor table and Scorpius (who was not a prefect and hadn't wanted to be) sat backwards on his seat at the nearby Ravenclaw table to grin at them. It was their first year without James; he and Derek had teased the trio mercilessly, but they had also always watched out for them. It probably helped that Daphne, whose trio of Hufflepuffs had become friends with them, was Derek's little sister.

She walked over now, smiling still almost shyly. She never stopped being a quiet, introverted girl. Although she was close with Harriet and Henry, her housemates who happened to be twins and both prefects, it was not at all unusual to see her on her own, and their activities together consisted mostly of studying or reading together rather than participating in much conversation or games. Despite being quite different from her – he had completely overcome his slight fear of strangers under his best friends' influence, since Scorpius had become popular (especially with girls) so he had had to be – Albus never changed his mind about his initial impression of her: she was very pretty, and he liked her.

"Hi, Rose, Scorpius, hi, Al," she said.

"Hey Daphne," they replied.

"How was your summer?" he asked, shuffling up so she could sit by him until the Sorting began, at which point she would have to return to the Hufflepuff table.

"It was good," she said briefly. She rarely went into detail, but Albus knew from experience that when she did, she had a lot to say and said it beautifully; it came from the vast number of novels she read. "Did you get my letter?"

"Yeah, sorry I didn't reply. Ruru was injured and Altair was busy for ages –"

"Oh no! Is Ruru okay?" Ruru was the owl Albus and Lily shared; James had been given his own for his seventeenth birthday, along with the customary watch. They had decided on the name, a Maori word for an owl, together.

"Yeah, he's fine now, just some Muggle kids shot him with something called a pellet gun. He only recovered a few days before term so I thought I'd just wait to see you. And yeah, Altair was busy 'cause of Auntie Hermione being in Australia." Altair was their parents' owl. Hermione had gone on holiday with her parents: the first time, in all the 23 years, they had felt up to visiting the place they had lived as Wendell and Monica Wilkins. The couple had even fallen out with their daughter for a while, so upset that she would have cut ties with them and changed their lives so dramatically without their permission, until they realised that by not speaking to her they were only continuing the very state of affairs they were angry at her for having created in the first place. Albus only knew half the story, but he still had to work to sound light and cheery as he mentioned it. Daphne, of course, had no idea.

"Oh, okay. I hope you all had a nice time," she smiled round at them. "Oh look, Harri and Henry are coming over, I think it's time to go back." She stood up, but, nervously, gave Albus a quick hug before scurrying off. Albus blinked in surprise. Daphne was not a 'hugs' person.

"She fancies you," said Scorpius bluntly. His best friend flushed scarlet.

"Oh, shut up," he muttered, and turned to face the doors as they began to open to let the new first-years in. Rose was turning too, but the blond reached over and caught her wrist.

"Meet me outside your common room at ten," he mouthed. Slightly bemused, she nodded, then spun round before he could see the shade of pink which she could feel now rising in her own cheeks. No-one, not even Albus, knew of the secret kiss the two of them had shared at the last Hogsmeade visit of fourth year – annoyingly to her, it had been at the end of yet another little argument – and she was determined that until she had worked out her own feelings fully, no-one would.

* * *

><p>Their passage through Hogwarts was, of course, vastly different to that of their parents' generation. No Dark wizards trying to kill them; no evil teachers; no murderous giant snakes; no escaped prisoners; not even a Triwizard Tournament, and certainly no hunting for horcruxes. In fact, not a single horcrux was in existence in the world throughout their whole school careers. Every one of them completed seventh year. The only thing they had to contend with, of course, was Bulstrode's little trio.<p>

Bulstrode, Flint and Greengrass did everything in their power to make Rose and Albus miserable, after their hostile encounter on the train. Until, that is, one memorable occasion near the end of their second year when James and Derek were passing by. The pair always chased off the Slytherins if they were around, but it didn't make much difference; this time, however, things had got personal. Bulstrode had just called Ginny a very rude word, and when Rose snapped back, Greengrass countered with,

"Don't think your Mudblood of a mother is any better." At that moment, James (on account of family pride) and Derek (on account of being muggle-born himself, as well as practically family to them by this time) had both thrown jinxes and hexes at the two of them, and one at Flint for good measure. Bulstrode was in the hospital wing for three days, and Greengrass seemed perpetually confused for the next few weeks. The huge number of detentions this earned the pair was, they said, worth it for the fact that Rose, Albus and Scorpius were never bothered by them again.

* * *

><p>By the time ten more years had passed, Albus and Daphne had two very young children, Rose was pregnant by Scorpius, Lily (a Hufflepuff) was engaged to Henry, and Hugo (a Gryffindor, despite James' comments) had just married a Ravenclaw girl called Sandra. Mala also got married - to another blond-haired, blue-eyed Ravenclaw boy. The eldest child of Teddy and Victoire was already getting excited to start Hogwarts two years later. Derek, on the other hand, never planned to settle down, and Harriet never seemed bothered about marriage either. James, having surprised everyone on his sixteenth birthday by coming out as gay (which disappointed a lot of girls!), surprised them further by finding a steady boyfriend in Jason's now-wife Cara's brother Lance Max, who really wasn't what he expected from a Slytherin at all; he merely happened to be pureblood, not very smart and rather lazy about anything that wasn't to do with his high ambitions of becoming a famous Quidditch player. Which he did.<p>

That's not to say they "all lived happily ever after", though. Ron was of course highly annoyed when he learnt his daughter and nephew were friends with "that Malfoy brat", despite Harry, Hermione and Ginny pointing out that Rose and Albus probably weren't lying about him being perfectly nice and friendly and not stuck-up, spiteful or vindictive at all; he was furious when he first caught them kissing. It was partly because he didn't like being able to see himself in Scorpius – the relationship was so reminiscent of his and Hermione's!

But, as Harry reflected one evening as he watched his grandchildren on the lawn, one barely crawling, the other walking a little unsteadily, they had grown up in an easier world, and this new generation would as well. Or so he hoped. You never knew what would happen next; a second Voldemort might be right around the corner, for all he knew; but he doubted it. The whole world had moved on since Tom Riddle's childhood. Fewer and fewer children even heard of the concept of blood purists until History of Magic lessons these days – even Durmstrang didn't teach so much as a hint of the Dark Arts now. Yes, it was a good world, Harry thought. Everything they had done, everything they had been through and fought against, even everyone they had lost…

"Gwam – Gwampa – lookie me walkies, Gwampa!"

It had been worth it.


End file.
